


i want to be the very best

by fredesrojo



Category: The Old Guard (Movie 2020)
Genre: F/F, Gen, M/M, Multi, Pokemon GO References, less shippy than I originally planned but oh well, this is essentially an ode to Nile's Millenial status
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-24
Updated: 2020-12-24
Packaged: 2021-03-11 02:34:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,238
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28297608
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fredesrojo/pseuds/fredesrojo
Summary: In which Nile is a Millenial™ and misses playing Pokemon Go with her brother, and Nicky helps her start a new tradition with her found family.Featuring Also Sort Of A Millenial Nicky, Quynh's 21st century crash course in the form of Avatar: The Last Airbender, Andy and Joe who are Not Morning People, and some blink and you'll miss it background Bopley.
Relationships: Booker | Sebastien le Livre/James Copley, Joe | Yusuf Al-Kaysani/Nicky | Nicolò di Genova, Nile Freeman/happiness, Quynh | Noriko/Andy | Andromache of Scythia
Comments: 4
Kudos: 103





	i want to be the very best

**Author's Note:**

  * For [seashadows](https://archiveofourown.org/users/seashadows/gifts).



> for Seas, from the TOG Discord Secret Santa exchange.
> 
> This was less shippy than I originally intended, but I do hope I ticked the "fluffy team dynamics" box. Happy Christmas!

It's an absolutely  _ millennial  _ thing for Nile to say, but she misses Pokemon Go.

Intellectually, she understands the need for minimal social media presence and keeping a low profile wherever they go. That being said, she misses her level 39 account like an aching wound as the team traipses through more and more exotic locales in Copley's mission to keep them "under the radar" for at least three months post-London. Egypt, Dubai, the Philippines, New Zealand all pass by in a blur of different horizons as they travel, stay for a few weeks, and then pack up to travel again when Copley's message to move on comes through.

She started playing the game as a way to keep contact with her little brother over training camp and her deployments, but she's always been nostalgic for the pixelated characters and the squint-inducing glow of a console screen ever since her first GameBoy, gifted over Christmas at age six. Ty rapidly outstripped her level-ups on his way to level 40 and a truly ludicrous amount of XP on his daily bike routes, but Nile always had the one-up in form of exclusive regional Pokemon wherever she went, and the one break from deployment where she actually got to attend the Safari Zone event in Dortmund.

The phone Copley set her up with is actually a newer model than the old iPhone she'd previously had on her mom's plan, and she's seriously tempted anytime she sees a vaguely twenty-something wandering the cities with their head bent low over their phone, fingers furiously swiping.

Again -- it's silly and very millennial of her to admit, but she misses the mindless fun of the game, and the satisfaction of catching a particularly rare Pokemon, or succeeding in a raid battle. Nile packs it away in a box in her mind labelled "before" and resolutely plans to ignore it, until her attention is drawn once more.

Nicky keeps the most similar hours to Nile, she learns over the course of their travels. He rises early with the sun, calm and quiet in comparison to Joe's tousle-haired grumbling and Andy's sometimes unnerving silence. He goes for a jog each morning if their current surroundings allow for it, and is usually back to assist Nile in preparing breakfast after an hour or so. They work in peaceful silence most mornings, broken only by quiet requests for ingredients or soft directions as they move around the kitchen of whatever safehouse in harmony.

Nicky, Nile has found, most often expresses his love for Joe and the team by proxy, through food. Joe will loudly proclaim the Genovian's accolades for all to hear if they allow him, but Nicky prefers the warmth of a good meal, or the sticky sweet squares of baklava he procures for Andy randomly, seafoam eyes bright with love and happiness at the inevitable smile she returns.

He is a deft hand in the kitchen and often has wonderful ideas to compliment Nile's half-remembered recipes from her mother -- they work synchronously together, and Andy and Joe never complain about the result.

But it's not the food, or the early mornings, that ultimately cement Nile's relationship with Nicky.

It is, in a flash of absolutely hilarious irony, Pokemon.

She's a bit embarrassed to admit it takes her nearly four months to realize what Nicky's doing on his daily "jog", and she only notices on a packed streetcar in Manila when Nicky makes a triumphant noise and swipes at the screen of his phone excitedly. The streetcar jostles them roughly, sending Nile thudding into Nicky's solid shoulder, and she catches a glimpse of his phone screen as she rights her balance.

"...Hang on. Are you playing  _ Pokemon _ ?"

She's stunned.

Nicky chews on his lower lip, his thumb circling in steady motions on the screen despite the instability of their riding platform, and with a quick flick he sends the Pokeball curving on screen to catch the Pokemon. He hums a low triumphant note at the "Excellent" that pops up in the center of the screen, finally swinging his gaze over to meet hers. "Yes? I have been playing for some time, now." 

"You're playing Pokemon."

"Mmhmm." Absently, Nicky taps through the confirmation screen stating that he's caught whatever it was, the screen defaulting back to the green map overlay. "It is a fun diversion to pass the time, particularly when we are not on a mission. I enjoy the colors and the little animals." His eyes crinkle joyfully at the corners as he smiles. "See? This one is my current companion -- I have named him after Yusuf." He tilts the screen, showing her the gently floating sprite of an Alolan Raichu, indeed aptly named Yusuf.

"I…" Nile trails off, sighing. "I used to play, before. With my little brother. It was an easy way for us to try and keep up contact when I was deployed."

Nicky looks sad at this admission, curling a supportive arm around her waist. "I am sorry, Nile."

She sniffs quietly, chuckling. "It's not your fault." When Nicky tilts the phone at her with an inquiring look, she shakes her head. "No, thanks. It...it would probably be too much."

"Let me know if you change your mind. I do not mind sharing an account. I have recently expanded my storage for companions again, so I have plenty of space." Nicky takes her silence as answer enough and goes back to tapping at his phone, making triumphant noises every so often.

Nile blinks past the sudden burn of tears in her eyes and resolutely pushes the incident into the same overloaded box in the back of her mind, resolving to forget about it.

She honestly  _ does _ forget about it in the ensuing whirlwind of the next two and a half months, caught up in the maelstrom of Quynh's return, Booker's return, the astounding revelation that Booker and Copley are  _ dating _ , and the welcome but also terrifying-in-the-moment return of Andy's immortality.

The weekend of her birthday dawns on the second week of their newest enforced "break" following Quynh and Booker's return to the group. Nile wakes early, shuffles out to the main living room, and joins Quynh on the couch, sinking down with her head resting in the archer's lap. Quynh hums, eyes intent on the screen where Azula and Zuko battle in towering swirls of flame. "Good morning."

"Morning." Nile leans into the gentle tracing of fingers over her scalp, peeking one eye open to squint up at Quynh. "Nicky up yet?"

Quynh shrugs. "Haven't seen him."

"Couldn't sleep?"

"Andromache's feet are like ice blocks," Quynh grumbles, shaking her head. "I came out here to get some peace." She hesitates, gaze still fixed on the screen as Azula cackles, lightning sparking on her fingertips. "I also did not want to wait to find out what happened."

Given that they'd stopped halfway through season three before everyone went to bed the last evening, Nile figured Quynh was watching ahead anyways. "TV give you any trouble?"

"Booker left it on the last picture screen."

"Mmhmm." Nile reluctantly disentangles herself from Quynh, sitting up with a quiet sigh. "Well, I guess I'll get some reps in before I start on breakfast."

Quynh hums again in response, her attention already focused back on the cartoon. 

Nile changes into soft leggings and a crop top, padding barefoot out into the small courtyard garden behind their latest safehouse, and sinks into the warm repetition of a basic calisthenics routine. Quynh is gone from the living room when she comes back in, and the shower connected to her and Andy's room is running when Nile walks past.

Years in the Marines and in several places where the water pressure was questionable at best have drilled the art of a quick shower into Nile, but she decides to luxuriate a bit. She figures it's the least she's owed on her birthday. 

(She hasn't actually brought up the fact that it is her birthday to the group. Nile has a sneaking suspicion Copley knows but is taking her lead on mentioning it, and she figures if Copley knows there's a good chance Booker is also aware.)

Quynh is back on the couch with a very grumbly Andy dozing against her chest when Nile shuffles back out to the kitchen, but Nicky is still mysteriously absent. Nile has learned her lesson in going looking for him, and has no desire to see any part of Joe's naked  _ anything _ ever again, so she ignores it and starts up a batch of French toast with the challah bread they'd purchased the day before. Quynh abandons Andy to doze back off on the couch and hops up on the counter next to Nile, watching the proceedings with interest.

"What is this one called?"

"French toast, where I'm from. No idea what the rest of the world calls it," Nile says as she mixes the custard to soak the bread.

"May I help?"

"You can slice the bread," Nile nods at the loaf and a bread knife. "Slice it thicker, if you can. About two finger width, maybe?" 

They work in companionable silence, Nile soaking each slice in the custard and then setting them aside to rest while she preps a small hash of diced potatoes. Quynh is able to prepare the coffee with minimal coaching from Nile, and she presents a steaming cup to a silent, grumpy-faced Andy when she shuffles into the kitchen. The raised eyebrows and appreciative hum over the rim of the cup draw a pleased smile from Quynh, and she willingly settles into Andy's lap to watch Nile finish cooking breakfast.

Nicky, Booker, and Copley stumble in the front door just as Nile is frying the last piece of toast, but she writes off the odd behavior from the latter two as a tousle-haired Joe appears from upstairs. Breakfast passes as it normally does, with the clinking of cutlery against plates and quiet conversation traded between members. Nile wanders upstairs to dig out one of the French novels Booker had gifted her upon his return, and returns downstairs to a strange box on the kitchen table and the rest of the group gathered awkwardly in the living room.

"Um... what's this?"

"You didn't tell us it was your birthday, but I was already working with James on getting this set up, so we just decided to make it a birthday gift, from all of us." Nicky bounces a little on his toes as he says this, gesturing at the box. 

Andy clears her throat. "I didn't have anything to do with this," She mutters, clearly still not awake enough to force anything resembling social niceties. Quynh scoffs from her position curled around Andy's waist, poking the Scythian. "Hush. Nile, you're welcome to choose what you would like to do. But Nicolo has been working for quite a while on this. And we think you will enjoy it."

Nile swallows down the rise of tears (they did know, they were just following her lead in not acknowledging it) and unwraps the package, raising her eyebrows at the new phone. "Another one?"

Copley grins. "Turn it on."

Turning the device on yields a familiar home screen, and one particular application she'd been avoiding bookmarked in the top corner. Nile looks back up at the group, meeting Nicky's excited gaze. "You did this?"

"Given what James told me about people in your age group, I figured that the game has more value to you than you wanted to let on. We have been working to find a safe way for us to play that won't give away our identity. This is what we came up with." 

Copley clears his throat. "Obviously some of the special release ones we couldn't get back. And I'm afraid we haven't quite gotten you back up to level 39, but you're close."

"You guys set me up a phone and an account, just so I can play Pokemon." Nile swallows, feeling an entirely inappropriate giggle bubbling up from her chest. "This is...the sweetest and weirdest thing anyone has ever done for me."

Booker laughs. "It gets weirder."

That's when Nile notices that they're  _ all _ holding phones, even Andy. "No way."

"I mean, we  _ are _ in Taiwan." Nicky bounces on his toes, clearly excited. "We mapped some of the best parks this morning."

Booker glances at his own phone, tapping idly at something. "There's a number of raids that should also be starting soon."

Excitement swells, and then dims slightly. "You're all sure you wanna come play some dumb kid's game with me?"

"You enjoy it. Also, it's not 'some dumb kid's game'," Nicky scoffs. " _ I _ play it."

"...Not helping your case there, Habibi." Joe kisses the offended pout off of Nicky's face. "Come on, let's get going. We've got a lunch picnic packed."

Nile leans into Andy's side as they make their way through the city, half her gaze on the screen, half focused on her friends -- her  _ family _ , now -- gathered around her as they walk and catch animated monsters. They worked together to set this up because of a vague comment she made about missing the game  _ months ago _ to Nicky.

Nile basks in the warm, happy feeling as they walk along, each arguing the merits of various types. She's happy. That is, until Andy's screen catches her eye. "Hold the hell up. You have a shiny Mewtwo?!"

**Author's Note:**

> Yes, I handwaved both Quynh's return and Andy's immortality returning, what of it?


End file.
